Julius Randle Recalls Final Hours With Knicks

The Knicks' prosperity at the top of the new decade was primarily penned by Randle, who burst onto the scene with a career-best season during the shortened 2020-21 campaign. After a hiccup the following year, Randle guided the Knicks to consecutive postseason showings with the help of newcomer Jalen Brunson.

But even with such success, the idea of Randle landing a long-term contract extension in New York was prevalent offseason talking point. Back-to-back postseasons marred by injury (including a shoulder ailment that kept him out of the 2024 tournament entirely) also took their toll on Randle, who turned to marijuana to combat "very frustrated and angry" feelings that distanced him from his wife Kendra and their children.

All the while, the Knicks' marquee was gradually turned to Brunson, culminating in his promotion to the team captaincy last summer.

“You know how New York is, man," Randle said. "You’re under a different microscope. So it’s like, you’re not just battling and trying to win. It seems like you’re battling a million different things.”

With the help of treatment from Dr. Daniel Amen, Kendra was able to snap Randle out of his funk, breaking his addiction to marijuana. That didn't, however, silence the shock of the trade from Manhattan to Minneapolis, one staged just mere days before each side's respective training camp opened.

“When I got traded, I’m like damn, I can’t believe this got taken from me. It’s like, you worked so hard to build something, and it was just snatched away," Randle recalled. "[But] once I got [to Minnesota], I was like it was a breath of fresh air. I’ve been loving it ever since, even when things weren’t going as good.”

Though Randle's conventional numbers did not reach their metropolitan heights, he gradually adjusted to the Timberwolves as the season went on. He hit his stride while helping Minnesota avoid Play-In purgatory and took advantage of a long-awaited healthy postseason, averaging 21.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 4.9 assists while shooting over 50 percent from the field. The Wolves upset the Los Angeles Lakers, Randle's original NBA employers, in the opening round before reaching the Western Conference Finals for the second straight year with a win over the Golden State Warriors.

One year later, the deal appears to have worked out for both sides: the Knicks appear to have created a legitimate championship contender that many peg as the early Eastern Conference favorites while Randle has embraced the more-laid back nature of Minneapolis basketball.

“When I’m here, I feel like I don’t have to be perfect every single day,” he said. “That just allows me to have that easiness and be comfortable to be like, all right, I’m not perfect every single day, but I’m trying my best. And people aren’t judging me just because you have one bad moment or two bad moments.”

The Wolves' glass slipper broke against the eventual champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the WCF but Randle eventually got his desired payday in the form of a three-year, $100 million extension in July. That has allowed him to form a home in the Minneapolis area, creating peace in both his personal and professional lives.

“My work-life balance, or just my ability to separate the two, have been a lot better since I’ve been here,” Randle said of working in Minnesota. "Once you come out of that, I feel like it’s just been like night and day for me. It’s like, all right, I’m never going back to being down like that. I’m never going back to being upset like that or I’m never going back to letting things that are out of my control worry me and bother me like that. I’m not going to put myself in those situations.”